Chapter 79: A Prophetic Unease

In dreams, or in the hazy aftermath of waking from a drunken stupor.

She would always recall the final, unforgettable moment of parting with her teacher:

All who were willing to sacrifice themselves were pulled by ribbons, falling like rain, into the portal. Outside the gate, a solitary figure stood before a sky filled with malevolent stars.

As she stretched out her hand, reaching desperately towards the crowned Blue Witch.

Pulled inward by the portal, she strained with all her might to glimpse outward.

Etched into her mind was only a smile, one she would ponder for a lifetime.

What kind of teacher lay beneath that smile?

Resolute? Grieving?

She couldn’t decipher it, so she chose only to remember.

The Blue Witch, who was both a mentor and a mother, had saved her amnesiac self from the ruins. She was the magical girl who had rescued her.

The past was like smoke, drifting across the fragmented light shimmering in the darkness.

Magical girl Fool’s Gold opened a pair of hazy eyes, realizing only then that she had fallen asleep again.

“Achoo.”

The still-young blonde woman gathered her long hair, letting it fall over one shoulder, and turned to gaze at the floor-to-ceiling window behind her.

She sat expressionless at the very top of the high tower, with Dawn City spread out entirely before her.

For some reason, she had been dreaming of the Blue Witch often lately.

“Lady Su Qingyao…”

she murmured, a trace of confusion rising in her eyes.

Thirty-five years had passed since that day, yet countless mysteries still lay before her.

What exactly had transpired on that day?

There was no way to know, only that the Hero had descended from a battlefield transcending reality, carrying a severely wounded Saintess.

Behind him, corpses lay strewn across the land, the blood of enemies and comrades mingled together.

After that, the Hero, who had disappeared with the Saintess, single-handedly launched one final, unplanned expedition. During the apocalyptic era, every ‘Expedition’ symbolized the elimination of a doomsday calamity’s influence.

Yet, the nameless expedition the Hero ultimately undertook alone remained a mystery to this day; no one knew which calamities had been vanquished.

People only knew that after the Hero returned once more:

Dozen of wonders, forged from the shattered fragments of ‘calamities’, rose from the ground, destined to form the cores of several colossal cities.

Although Dawn City had already been established by then, it was the first location to receive these ‘fragments’.

Around these fragments, the entire Magical Girls’ Tower was eventually constructed.

This location, coincidentally, was not far from where the Hero had chosen for Lady Su Qingyao to rest.

‘What a marvelous coincidence, wouldn’t you say?’

****

‘…It was no coincidence at all—’

The “unease” spreading from the jungle had already captured the attention of more than just Lu Zhichuan.

Lu Zhichuan had been sitting silently by the bonfire for a long time, watching the crackling flames. A few stray sparks had singed the hem of Fang Yuan’s suit.

“What do you mean, ‘the atmosphere isn’t right’?”

He looked up with interest, meeting the gaze of the man wearing gold-rimmed glasses.

In their discussions with Qing, the “top-tier” Transcended among the parents they’d settled on was undoubtedly the Fifth-Tier anomaly scholar before him.

Now, it seemed this Transcended, who appeared quite young, possessed remarkably keen intuition.

“Nothing much, probably just a misconception.”

Fang Yuan squinted slightly, picked up some scattered, still-damp firewood from the ground, and tossed it into the bonfire.

“Hiss—”

Instead, a cloud of choking smoke billowed up, causing him to cough incessantly.

“Cough, cough, cough.”

“I just felt an unusual magical fluctuation flash for a moment.”

“Unfortunately, cough, I’m not a specialist in magic.”

Covering his mouth with a hand, Fang Yuan coughed as he sat down opposite Lu Zhichuan.

“Perhaps you should take a break first.”

Lu Zhichuan glanced at him, offering the advice out of goodwill.

Fang Yuan, however, paid no mind to his appearance, waving a hand to signal Lu Zhichuan to continue.

Lu Zhichuan simply exhaled through his nose and looked at his wrist. “Then you might have asked the wrong person. Unfortunately, I don’t specialize in magic either.”

“And, as you can see—”

Lu Zhichuan spread his hands, stating frankly, “I’m merely a weak, First-Tier Transcended.”

Fang Yuan didn’t immediately respond.

His eyes, hidden behind his glasses, fixed on Lu Zhichuan’s frank expression, or more precisely, met his unruffled gaze.

Fang Yuan couldn’t discern anything more from the man’s face.

“In that case, I’ve asked the right person.”

Fang Yuan rose from his chair, patted the dust from his trousers, and said, “I have great faith in you, the ‘big shot’ who borrowed bodyguards from a museum.”

He gave Lu Zhichuan a thumbs-up.

“Whatever your plans, sir, I am willing to cooperate.”

“I just hope your arrangements won’t drag my foolish child into this.”

“If they do—”

Fang Yuan, expressionless, mimicked Lu Zhichuan’s gesture, spreading his hands innocently. “I hope you’ll tell me in advance, so I know how to cooperate.”

Although his words carried a slight edge, Fang Yuan’s attitude was undoubtedly sincere.

To him, the sudden appearance of a “big shot” meant the situation was highly likely to escalate due to “unforeseen circumstances.”

He was probably concerned his daughter might get inexplicably entangled in some unsavory, disreputable affairs.

Given his experience as the Hero, Lu Zhichuan could clearly discern the bluster in Fang Yuan’s words.

Lu Zhichuan stroked his chin. He showed no reaction to Fang Yuan’s challenging demeanor, instead offering his answer calmly, almost coldly.

“I wouldn’t call myself a ‘big shot’. If anything, I’m just a minor councilor.”

“Furthermore—”

Lu Zhichuan pointed overhead, where several Transcended, clustered together, were racing across the treetops towards the camp. “I also don’t know what will happen next.”

“—I’m just certain that something will happen.”

Lu Zhichuan felt he had been quite frank.

He was practically on the verge of handing Fang Yuan the notes he’d written in his spare time. Lu Zhichuan didn’t particularly mind a protective parent challenging him.

“That’s why I came. After all, my own child is also participating in this training.”

Lu Zhichuan picked up the dried firewood he had placed by the fire earlier and tossed it in, mimicking Fang Yuan’s earlier action.

This time, after the flames consumed the wood, only a few sparks flew out, bursting into scattered specks of light.

They reflected on Fang Yuan’s glasses.

The latter sighed as if conceding defeat, then settled into the empty spot beside Lu Zhichuan.

“Ah, now I truly believe you’re some kind of ‘big shot’.”

He remarked, not without emotion.

Lu Zhichuan offered no comment, making no further attempt to correct Fang Yuan’s perception, letting him speculate as he pleased.

“Oh, right,” Lu Zhichuan said, recalling something else.

“Since you’ve already guessed, if we get separated later, there’s no need to remind them to look for me.”

As if anticipating what was to come, Lu Zhichuan spoke without lifting his head.

Fang Yuan choked on his thoughts, swallowing his original words whole.

“Alright—alright.”

He raised his hands in surrender. “I can probably guess what’s about to happen.”